TW: This article contains topics such as SA, viewers’ discretion is advised.
It seems it happened overnight. For many, Andrew Callaghan (journalist and internet sensation), has long stood as a martyr for free speech and integrity within the field of reporting. His newly released HBO documentary, This Place Rules, details the events leading up to January 6th, and the forces at play driving division within voters It has been generally considered a success. However, while Callaghan has been riding the high from his movie and touring across the states, his success has suddenly been darkened by a string of sexual assault allegations, some even spanning back as far as 2020.
The allegations first became known when TikTok user Caroline Elise came forward, discussing her experiences with Callaghan in a video that soon became viral. In it, she recounts the incident in which she was pressured by Callaghan into a sexual situation, after he gained access to her home, claiming to have had a “falling out” with one of his crew members some hours earlier. In the following days and weeks, several other women also came forward (all across the United States), relaying similar encounters they had had with Callaghan, and the trauma that these encounters inflicted on their psyche.
Callaghan himself responded in a video released on Youtube, in which he claims to be ready to take full responsibility for his actions, while still maintaining that he has generally accepted “no” as an answer. The video received intense backlash online, although it seems that it was well received among his fans. Soon after this, one of the victims (Dana), responded to the video on her own Youtube channel, questioning the authenticity of Callaghan’s apology, and emphasizing that despite his successes, she will always perceive him as a “serial predator.”
Dana then goes on to relay her disappointment and sadness that this type of behavior is so common within our culture, and how it is the victims of sexual assault that unfairly endure the harshest backlash and criticism after these allegations have come to light.
For many, these allegations have sparked a renewal of awareness about predatory behavior within powerful male figures, and how often these figures use their status and fame to take advantage of people. As Dana herself put it, “I just want women and young girls, and men… anybody… to know that you don’t have to put up with this…This behavior is not normal. Even though it’s widespread, it shouldn’t be though. I just want people to understand and to know that, and take that into consideration.”
